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Princeton University
22-8-2, 14-6-2
St. Lawrence
17-14-6, 9-8-5
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Game Leaders
Players Mentioned
Contini Thrills Late In Regulation, But St. Lawrence Advances To ECAC Semis
February 28, 2016 | Women's Ice Hockey
Everything you needed to know about the Ivy League champion Princeton women's hockey team, you could have learned in the final minutes of regulation Sunday.
Playing without Ivy League Player of the Year Kelsey Koelzer, who suffered a first-period injury and never returned to Game 3 of the ECAC quarterfinal series against St. Lawrence, the Tigers simply kept grinding and battling until they thrilled their home fans with an equalizing goal with only a few precious seconds remaining in regulation.
It was that spirit and drive that led Princeton to 22 wins on the season, as well as its first Ivy League title in a decade, but the Tigers fell one goal short of their first trip to the ECAC semifinal since that same 2006 season. St. Lawrence freshman Justine Reyes punched the Saints' ticket there with a Game 3 overtime tally in a one-on-one move just in front of the Tiger goal.
Princeton junior Molly Contini sent the game to overtime with a redirection at the 19:45 mark of the final period. The 6-on-4 goal ignited Baker Rink, but St. Lawrence rallied in the overtime and set up the game-winning goal with a cross-ice pass midway through the first sudden-death session. The Saints were able to get into the offensive zone and fire one shot that Kimberly Newell saved, but St. Lawrence kept the puck. Jenna Marks was able to find Reyes alone on the doorstep, and she did the rest, skating in and making a move before finding the wide side of the goal for the clincher.
"It was the most positive I've ever been before a period is before the overtime period," said Ivy League Coach of the Year Jeff Kampersal. "I thought for sure we'd get it first. We outshot them 7-1. It happens. It was an awesome series."
St. Lawrence outshot Princeton 37-26, but Newell was up for the challenge with 32 saves.
For the first time in any of the five games between St. Lawrence and Princeton — all of which were decided by a single goal — the Tigers were able to put the first goal on the board. A faceoff to the right of St. Lawrence goaltender Grace Harrison was won by Princeton, and Morgan Sly was able to slide the puck towards the center of the ice, just inside the circle.
Junior Cassidy Tucker was alone waiting for it, and she didn't waste any time making her decision. She fired a shot into the goal for the 1-0 lead, an advantage that would hold until early in the second period, when Brooke Webster evened the score for St. Lawrence with a goal from Hannah Miller.
Webster followed with another goal about seven minutes later to open a 2-1 lead for the Saints, and it came on a two-man advantage for St. Lawrence. Newell had already made a flurry of saves on the penalty kill, but Kennedy Marchment found Webster on the doorstep, and she knocked it in for the one-goal lead. The goal would be reviewed, but not overturned.
Trailing 2-1, Princeton senior Jaimie McDonell initiated the tying goal by winning a battle along the right boards and sending a pass back to sophomore Emily Achterkirch, who was unguarded along the blue line. She skated in and fired a wrist shot at Grace Harrison, who blocked the puck but did not secure it.
And that was all that junior Molly Contini would need. She knocked the rebound into the goal to even the score at 2-2, and it remained that way until the final period.
St. Lawrence struck early in the final period when defenseman Amanda Boulier fired a high shot from the blue line — in the same general area as Achterkirch's assist — for the 3-2 lead. Newell may have been screened on the shot by Marchment, who raised her stick but did not cause a deflection (it would also be reviewed by the officials). The goal came at the 4:22 mark of the period and left Princeton battling for its ECAC postseason life.
And that battle literally came down to the final seconds. St. Lawrence took a penalty with just under two minutes remaining, and Princeton head coach Jeff Kampersal used that opportunity to remove Newell and play 6-on-4 hockey. The Tigers kept earning opportunities by winning faceoffs, and Harrison kept turning them away.
But not all of them.
Princeton won a faceoff with 33 seconds remaining and moved the puck around until McDonell had a clean look from Harrison's right side. There was traffic in front of Harrison, but Contini found a spot to the left of the goal and redirected a McDonell shot for a thrilling goal with 15 seconds remaining.
Princeton came out fired up and took seven shots at St. Lawrence, but Harrison kept the puck out of the net long enough for Reyes to score the winner.
"Our kids played with a lot of heart and soul," a proud Kampersal said added afterwards. "I've been doing this for 20 years and this year has been the most fun. It's been the most trying year as well, there's been some things our kids have battled and worked through and they're resilient. They're an awesome group."